Jawbone UP4 Review

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Pros

Pro

Advanced metrics tracking system

UP4 uses Bioimpedance sensors that track respiration, perspiration, hydration, skin temperature, heat flux, BMI, and can even sense which activity is being done. For instance, UP4 can identify sports like tennis and log the information automatically.

Pro

Integrates with an impressive list of third-party apps

Jawbone app allows data from third-party apps to be imported as well as Jawbone's data to be used to supplement other apps. When activity is logged in a third-party app it will show up in Jawbone app's feed to give a complete overview of fitness and health situation. Some of the integrations include Runtastic, MapMyFitness, Strava, Nest, Kiqplan, Wello, and others.

Pro

Allows setting goals, alerts and reminders in order to motivate

There are multiple ways the app tries to motivate. First it asks to set goals and if you are struggling in achieving them, you can set the tracker to remind or alert you via notifications of your connected device or vibrating the wristband itself.

Pro

Has a social component

You can add friends or just random people and see their activity in your app's activity feed. You can also cheer them on and comment on progress.

Pro

Integrates with Jawbone's free app for logging food & drink

Foods eaten can be added manually from a comprehensive list and detailed statistics about them can be seen. Foods can also be added by pointing smartphone's camera to a bar-code.

Pro

Can be used to log workout

To automatically track a timed activity, you can set the wristband in Stopwatch mode by pressing + long-pressing the button. You can also enter the activity manually from the app by supplying information on the activity type, effort level, start time and duration.

Pro

Accurate step counter

UP3 has a very low margin of error when counting steps. For example, it won't count arm movements towards total step count as many other fitness trackers tend to do. As such it will be able to provide more accurate data on calories burned, time active and distance traveled.

Pro

7-day battery life

Running 24 hours a day, UP3 will last a week off of one charge.

Pro

Offers personalized goals

A feature called "Today I Will" suggests personalized goals throughout the day.

Pro

Has OLED indicators for notifications & status

Blue light indicates sleep mode, the orange light indicates activity, and white indicates that there is a notification.

Pro

Integrates with IFTTT

IFTTT (IF This Then That) is an automation app. By integrating it with UP3 you can get functionality like turning lights on in your room when you wake up, creating a chart of all your data and uploading to Google Drive, log a meal when you check in at a restaurant on Foursquare, etc. You can see a list of over a 1000 public recipes here.

Pro

One size fits all

UP4 comes with an adjustable strap so everyone can wear the same bracelet.

Pro

Power nap mode

2 presses + long-press on the wristband will enter power nap mode. Power nap setting, such as how long should you be asleep and your maximum time spent sleeping and awake, can be adjusted from within the application.

Pro

Real-time Bluetooth 4.0 syncing

Bluetooth syncing removes the hassle of having to take the device off of the wrist and putting it back on again multiple times throughout the day. It also allows the device to send notifications to the phone. Bluetooth 4.0 is a great benefit to UP4 users because it doesn't use as much energy as previous versions, which will boost battery life.

Pro

Can be set up to e-mail a weekly summary

Jawbone allows for users to set up a weekly email that will send a summary of their activities making fro an easy way to see what one has done in the last week.

Pro

Can be used for reminders

Reminders can be set up in the up app that will make the wristband vibrate at a set point in time and a notification pop up on your smartphone.

Pro

Advanced sleep tracking

UP4 is capable of detecting light, deep & REM sleep. Correlation between activity and sleep are also recorded so Smart Coach can make personalized sleep recommendations in the future.

UP4 can automatically detect when you go to sleep based on lowered heart rate and lack of movement or sleep mode can be set up manually. While the automatic sleep tracking is in most cases sufficiently accurate and will get more accurate over time, start and end of sleep can be also adjusted after the fact if the tracker doesn't get it right.

Pro

American Express NFC payment integration

Users can make payments with a connected American Express cards easily through using their UP4. This works at certain retailers, but not all.

Cons

Con

No display

Instead, UP4 has LED indicators.

Con

Can't track elevation

There is no elevation sensor in the device, so there will be no way to know the height walked or ran when wearing it.